The Yellow-Haired Villain in Soaring Phoenix's Novels Also Desires Happiness Chapter 554: Sacrifice

“What’s your na?”

In the racing carriage, Albert struggled to steady himself while asking the black-robed man up front.

“Eken.”

“Family na?”

“Your Highness may simply call Eken.”

The black cowl swayed in the gale, now and then revealing a steady profile. Though there was no bloodline suppression, Eken’s handling of the reins was clearly far more practiced than Muen’s. The unruly dragon-blood horse still displayed extre speed and agility in his hands.

“Eken...”

Albert was not angered by Eken’s coldness. He pondered a mont and continued:

“How much longer do we need?”

“Well... that depends on whether the other side feels like letting us through early!”

Eken’s expression snapped taut. He gave the reins a sudden whip. The carriage fishtailed at a fork and slid into a road not on the original plan. The instant the carriage turned, the side wall suddenly collapsed and a beastified one lunged out—only to be crushed into the rubble by the carriage’s side-swipe, and the array on the carriage body flared, pressing it directly into a pulp.

The thick stench and the grueso gore turned Albert a shade pale.

“Your Highness, are you all right?”

“I’m fine.”

With Lavini’s support, Albert still steadied his mind—enough for Eken to spare a longer glance at this crown prince who, according to rumor, had suddenly recovered his faculties.

“You changed our route again just now?”

“There was no helping it. We can’t very well step into their trap.”

As he spoke, Eken’s gaze flickered.

“Very strange. We’ve already released two other disguised decoys, and yet why does it feel like there’s been no lessening of the pressure on our side at all?”

“Don’t tell you’re also...”

Albert tucked Lavini slightly behind him and grew alert.

“I already said Lavini would never betray . She’s been at my side this whole ti—she’s had no chance to pass word to the enemy. If you want to suspect soone, you should start by suspecting your own side!”

“Your Highness misunderstands.”

Eken flicked a glance at Lavini, who was forcing herself to look calm, and said:

“This is no ti for us to tear each other apart. What I an is: if our intelligence hasn’t leaked, then it can only an the force they’ve committed is greater than we imagined—so great, perhaps, they can cover all three directions at once.”

No sooner had he spoken than the carriage jolted violently. Several more beastified ones sprang from who-knew-where and threw themselves onto the carriage body, using claws and fangs to launch a death-mad assault.

“Damn it, how many of these things are there?”

Eken cursed and roared:

“Don’t hold back! Protect His Highness! Anyone who closes in dies!”

The black-robed guards around the carriage flashed into motion. Brilliant magical radiance lit the dark alleys, and the beastified ones burst into flying chunks of at.

But the glow of magic seed to serve as a beacon in the dark. With shrill whistles through the air, spell-breaking bolts ca sleeting in, nailing into the carriage again and again. As more and more attacks had to be resisted, the flowing runes across the carriage grew ever dimr, on the brink of collapse.

“Damn—there’s soone in the dark watching us!”

Eken ordered his n to block those spell-breaking bolts as best they could. If the carriage’s defenses failed, Albert would be in even greater danger.

“This won’t do.”

Even amid the fierce fight, Eken kept constant watch on the surroundings, seeing his n spend down their mana and battle-qi against what seed an undiminished number of beastified ones, while also having to spare effort to intercept bolts and to guard against other hidden hands that might strike at any mont.

At this rate, in a few minutes at most they would all be spent and die here.

“They’re driving these beastified ones to wear us down and hold us in place. If we keep tangling like this, we’re dead!”

“Then what do we do?”

Albert’s composure finally frayed a little; he asked.

“We have to shake them.”

Eken said:

“Past that street up ahead, Lord Bruce set one of our backups in place. It’s a tunnel. Through the tunnel we can go straight to a spot only one block from the destination!”

“A tunnel...”

Albert’s eyes lit, then he asked, “But why not dig directly to the destination?”

“Not enough ti!”

Eken answered:

“In truth, Lord Bruce likely didn’t expect we’d be forced to the point of using that thod after all. But this isn’t the ti to dwell on that. We have a bigger problem!”

“What problem?”

“How to get into the tunnel! If we can’t shake these people, we’ll have no chance to enter at all. That tunnel can’t take a carriage!”

“...”

Albert fell silent as well.

He was only an ordinary man, but with his wits he had a perfectly clear read on the danger before them. He understood naturally that if they could not shake the pursuers, then never mind entering a tunnel—if the carriage so much as slowed a little, it would be dragged down completely by those beastified ones mad as rabid dogs, as if sinking into a mire, unable to take a single step forward again!

But with the other side’s dragnet spread wide, how were their few people supposed to...

“I’ll go.”

Just then, Lavini—who had been behind Albert all along—broke the silence, let out a long breath, and said:

“Let be the decoy.”

“What—Vini, you...”

Albert’s face changed. He grabbed Lavini’s arm. “There’s no need for you to—”

“There is.”

Lavini cut him off. Her pretty face had gone paper-white. She forced herself calm, but the tremor in her voice could still be felt:

“This is the only way. As Mr. Eken said, if we want to shake them, soone has to draw them off—at least draw off a portion to share the pressure. And I am the prince’s maid. If I’m the decoy, the other side will have to bite this bait no matter what.”

“I forbid you to go!”

Albert’s voice snapped:

“Do you know what that ans? You go as bait—how is that any different from courting death? They won’t let you go!”

“I’m a martialist too. It won’t be that easy to pin down.”

Lavini took Albert’s hand and, little by little, pried it off her arm. She looked into his eyes and smiled gently:

“Besides, so long as Your Highness is safe, anything I give is worth it.”

“But even so—”

“Your Highness, let go.”

Lavini pleaded again:

“You still have what you must do, don’t you? You cannot ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) fall here.”

“...”

Albert’s lips worked. He stared straight at her, dazed for quite a while, wanting to speak yet with nothing to say. In the end he could only slump against the carriage wall.

He knew, too, that what Lavini said really was the best way.

“We clearly... we clearly promised.”

“Don’t worry, Your Highness. I’ll co back—believe .”

Lavini repeated the promise between them, then quickly looked to Eken:

“Mr. Eken, where is that tunnel?”

Eken gave Lavini a long, deep look and pondered before saying, “About five hundred ters ahead—behind the Franky Tavern, leading to the Doran Shop’s basent. It’s very well hidden. We’ll slip out from there.”

“Good. Then please assign soone with a build close to His Highness to co with , and find a chance to let off the carriage. I’ll try to draw off as many enemies as I can. After that, whether you can break through... will be up to you.”

Eken thought for a mont and nodded. “It truly is the best plan. Rest assured, I will deliver His Highness to the spot safely—even if I have to stake my life.”

“Thank you.”

Lavini gave a soft, lovely smile, then turned back, looking sadly at Albert, who was glaring at her in anger:

“Your Highness, may I hug you once more?”

“...”

“If you don’t answer, I’ll take it as consent.”

Lavini leaned in, slid her arms around Albert’s neck, and lingered against his cheek.

But ti was tight. She could only sip at that warmth and then rise, deftly straighten his collar, and whisper:

“Your Highness, I believe in you. You will succeed. You will.”

“Vini...”

All Albert’s anger drained away, leaving only pain. His fists clenched in a rush; veins on the backs of his hands jumped and throbbed. But in the end he still could not give the order to make her stay.